He added: "I think that, as a manager, we have enough problems with our teams without talking about other teams.

"I will not answer that but I can say we have important restrictions about the amount of money and the amount of players. We didn't spend any money in bringing Frank Lampard from New York City to Manchester. He was a free player."

Pellegrini guided City to the Premier League title and the Capital One Cup in his first season in charge but, with four new recruits, he believes he now has a better group of players.

He added: "The four players that have arrive for the moment -- Willy Caballero, [Bacary] Sagna, Frank Lampard and Fernando, will be very important for us."